Career: Carr began performing on the stand-up circuit, doing up to 300 shows a year for three years, before taking his act to the Edinburgh festival in 2002. This brought him to the attention of TV bosses, and before long he was presenting series such as Your Face or Mine and Distraction. Since then, he's rarely been off TVscreens, hosting the first run of the Friday Night Project, 8 Out of 10 Cats and numerous Channel 4 list shows. He's also made a move into acting, appearing in Alien Autopsy, Confetti, Stormbreaker and Telstar. He is one of Britain's busiest comics and his DVDs are big sellers.

Career: Riley's big break came in 2008 when she was chosen from more than 1,000 applicants to replace Carol Vorderman on Countdown. She presented her first show alongside Jeff Stelling in January 2009, and reached her 1,000th episode in June 2013. Away from the numbers and letters on Countdown, she began co-hosting The Gadget Show alongside Jason Bradbury in June 2013. She was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing in 2013 and was the fifth celebrity to be eliminated.

Career: Lock's first professional TV appearance was in 1993, when he appeared in a supporting role alongside Rob Newman and David Baddiel on their signature TV show Newman and Baddiel in Pieces. He toured with the duo as their support act and, as a result, became the first comedian to perform at Wembley Arena. He script-edited the 1998 BBC Two series Is It Bill Bailey? and had his own show on BBC radio, 15 Minutes of Misery. It was later expanded into the half-hour series, 15 Storeys High. He's now a team captain on the panel game 8 Out of 10 Cats. Other game show appearances have come in the likes of The Big Fat Quiz of the Year, Have I Got News for You, QI, and They Think It's All Over. He also hosted his own entertainment show on Channel 4 called TV Heaven, Telly Hell.

Career: Fielding performed regularly as a stand-up comedian during the late 1990s, and appeared repeatedly on the TV stand-up showcase Lee Mack's Gas. He formed a short-lived but well-received comedy partnership with Russell Brand. His highly animated stand-up routine included surreal stories, physical comedy, characters, and songs, much like his later work alongside Julian Barratt in The Mighty Boosh, which became a monster hit when it moved to TV in 2004. He remains an active stand-up, has his own Channel 4 show (Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy) and is a popular team captain on never Mind the Buzzcocks. He's also still a keen artist and has shown his work in a number of exhibitions.

Career: Mangan became a regular on the West End stage, and apart from some foreign adverts, steered clear of TV work for years. He made his film debut in Martha, Meet Frank, Daniel and Laurence in 1998, and had a small role in Billy Elliot. Early TV appearances came in Big Bad World, Sword of Honour, In Defence and Human Remains before his big break as the lead in Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years. He's worked consistently in movies and on TV ever since, with roles in Jane Hall, Marple, Never Better, I'm Alan Partridge, Hyperdrive, and the acclaimed Green Wing. His recent work includes Dirk Gently and Episodes on TV, as well as several well-received stage performances.

Career: Ripley's first acting role after graduating drama school was playing Osatko in the chorus of Around the World in 80 Days at the Liverpool Playhouse during the 1990-91 pantomime season. Following minor roles in film and TV, her big break came in 1996 when she landed a role in Cold Feet; she later became the only cast member to be nominated for a BAFTA award. Ripley left the drama during series four, but made a guest appearance in the final episode. After Cold Feet, she appeared in Bedtime, Reggie Perrin, Monday Monday and a long-running series of Tesco adverts with Mark Addy.

Career: Osman has worked behind the scenes as an executive producer on a number of TV programmes, including Deal or No Deal, 8 Out of 10 Cats, and 10 O'Clock Live. As the UK creative director of TV production company Endemol, he pitched the quiz Pointless to the BBC. As a way of explaining the rules, he played the co-host during a run-through. He was asked to do the role for real when the show was commissioned. Pointless started on BBC Two in 2009 and was an immediate hit. It quickly made the switch to BBC One. Since being in the spotlight on Pointless, he has made guest appearances on QI, Have I Got News for You and Would I Lie to You? He also guest presented an episode of The One Show alongside Alex Jones.